Warmed Blade
by Punch Drunk Marc
Summary: Natsu is going on his 1st official date with Erza. However, she seems more nervous than he is. Will these two be able to have a relaxing day together? Or will they take all of Magnolia down with them in a flurry of fire & swords? 2 Part NaZa story. The sequel story "Promise" is now up and ready to read.
1. Preparation

**I do not own Fairy Tail or any of it's characters, they are a property of Hiro Mashima & his publshers.**

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It was a sunny day in Magnolia, sunnier than most actually. The heat waves flowed like water through the streets. Natsu & Happy were taking the main road to the guild, the formers footsteps getting heavier as he continued to walk.

"Don't worry Natsu, you look fine." Happy said as he walked next to him towards the guild hall

Natsu looked different compared to usual attire, instead of his usual black and white attire; he wore a black and white plaid shirt with a crosshatch pattern, blue pants, brown shoes, while still having his trademark scarf wrapped around his neck. He looked at his cat and grumbled.

"I don't know Happy, how come I have to wear this? Why can't I just wear my normal clothes?" Natsu continued to tug and pull at his shirt.

"Because she told you to wear something nice, and you know how she can get." As happy said this Natsu instantly stopped tugging.

"You're right and I really don't wanna make her mad. But the guys at the guild are going to make fun of me." He said with a sullen look on his face

"They make fun of you anyway." Happy retorted

They had arrived at the guild hall a few minutes later and everyone was as rowdy and raucous as ever; However, all the drinking, talking, laughing, and carrying on, stopped as soon as Natsu opened the doors.

That's when the laughter grew louder, all directed at him.

Macao was the 1st to speak through his laughter, "Nice outfit Natsu."

"Looking like a real man there buddy." Elfman interjected sarcastically

"Nice shirt pinky." Gajeel added curtly

Natsu ignored his friends and walked to the bar, exhausted, he sat on a stool. He looked to his left and saw Gray laughing at him as well.

"Who dressed you this morning? Happy?" Gray continued to laugh

"At least I got dressed this morning." Natsu retorted.

Gray looked confused and looked down, realizing he was wearing only his boxers he began to panic

"Dammit, not again. Where are my clothes?" Then as if it was a trigger going off in her mind, Juvia ran right over to her beloved Gray, holding his clothes.

"Here they are Gray." She said with love in her voice, "I knew you would notice eventually so I gathered them for you." She smiled wide at him.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" He asked a bit irritated

Juvia's face turned bright red with embarrassment, "Well…you see I…" she continued to stammer as Natsu turned his attention to Mirajane, who brought him a water.

"Don't worry about them Natsu, I think you look adorable. I'm sure she'll love it." Mira said with her usual warm smile

Natsu took his water and grumbled under his breath "whatever…", he proceeded to pout while he sipped his water at the bar.

Lucy, Wendy, & Carla walked into the guild hall shortly after and immediately spotted Natsu at the bar. They walked up to him and began to grill him on his clothing choice.

"Wow Natsu, you actually look pretty nice today. What's the occasion? " Lucy asked.

Natsu looked up from his sulking position, "I don't wanna talk about it."

"She's right," Wendy added, "I think you look nice, right Carla?" she looked at the little white cat for her answer

"Well if you're asking me, I think he looks absolutely ridiculous." She said coldly. Things then grew silent for the four as Lucy & Wendy stared awkwardly at Carla as Natsu sulked even lower.

"What? You asked my opinion." The cat replied as she walked away towards Happy.

They both shook off the awkwardness and turned their attention towards Mira

"What's Natsu all dressed up for Mira?" Lucy inquired

Mira turned around and with a smile on her face answered her friend.

"Oh Natsu? He's just embarrassed because he's going on a date with Erza today."

Wendy & Lucy couldn't hide their shock and the both exclaimed in surprise

"WHAT?! NATSU IS GOING ON A DATE…WITH ERZA?!"

Just then the whole guild hall grew silent upon hearing the startling announcement.

Scattered chatter could be heard all around the guild hall

"What Natsu & Erza…on a date?"

"What could she possibly see in him?"

"Damn, it takes a real man to be able to go out with Erza."

"Poor guy, he doesn't stand a chance."

"It was nice knowing him."

Hearing all the chatter made Natsu all the more nervous, as he sulked so low he was almost touching the floor below.

"Is this your 1st date Natsu?" Lucy asked him with a smile on her face

"What? Yea…I guess, I mean Erza and I have done stuff like this before, we just never told anyone."

"What?!" Lucy screamed, "How? I mean did you ask her before?"

"No, she asked me. It was weird though she kept fidgeting and looking at the ground when she asked me this time. Usually she would say something like "Natsu, you and I are going to eat…NOW!" or something like that. This time she acted all scared or something."

Lucy gave Natsu a sly smirk

_This idiot, it's obvious that Erza likes him. _She thought to herself.

"Wow Natsu, you must be happy, you get to hang out with a pretty girl like Ms. Erza." Wendy said with a light in her eye

Natsu scratched his head, "Yeah I guess, Erza and I are just friends."

"You idiot." Lucy said coldly to him, "It's pretty obvious that Erza likes you."

Natsu's eyes widened with surprise, "She…she does?" He looked at Lucy with a confused look on his face

"Yes, I think she is fond of you as well." Mira interjected, "She always seems to seek a glance at you when you're not paying attention."

"She does?"

Natsu sat at the stool and pondered at what the two girls said to him. He started to remember about all the times Erza attacked and assaulted him over the years, and his face started to turn white in fear. Then he started to think of the times they protected each other, he thought of the battle against Phantom Raven, the fight against Jellal in the Tower of Heaven, & the fight against Laxus.

A smile began to grace his face.

"So," Lucy began to speak, breaking his concentration, "Do you like Erza."

Natsu, completely caught off guard by this began stammering nervously, "What? Well…uh…I…"

But before he could answer, the guild hall doors flew open and Natsu heard a terrifying yet all too familiar voice calling to him from the door way.

"NATSU! Come, It's time to go."

…

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So there it is, part one of my 1st ever Fairy Tail story, pretty basic so far. Let me know what you guys think :)


	2. The Date

Natsu heard the voice, his face overtaken by terror as he turned his head towards the door. Sure enough there was Erza, clad in her trademark steel gray armor standing in the doorway. He tried to hide behind the bar, but Erza had already spotted him.

She walked over to the bar and pulled him up from his collar, he forgot how strong she was. She looked him in the face and gave him and uncomfortable smile.

"Come on Natsu, it'll be fun."

She then proceeded to drag him across the floor of the guild hall as she headed toward the exit.

"Have fun you two." Mira yelled as she waved from the bar

Natsu could barely hear her from the sound of his heart beating out of his chest in fear. As he continued to be dragged across the floor, he could hear his friend's laughter and mocking.

"Good Luck Natsu!"

"It was nice knowing ya."

"Try not to hurt him too much Erza."

Natsu couldn't hold his fear any longer and began to struggle violently while in Erza's grip.

"No! I don't wanna go, I changed my mind Erza, let me go. Guys! Elfman, Grey, Lucy, Happy someone help m…"

POW!

His protesting stopped as Erza struck his head with a strong fist, and he lie unconscious until they exited the guild.

When they made it outside Natsu awakened thanks to the sun shining in his face.

He sat up and saw that his head was in Erza's lap

"E…Erza? What happened?" he asked confused

"You were whining too much so I hit you in the head to shut you up. When you didn't wake up I decided to watch you…" Her eyes widened and her face grew red in embarrassment "I mean decided to wait until you woke up." She said catching herself "Is that a problem?" her eyes grew stern

"Oh, uh, no." Natsu began rubbing his head as he sat up "You didn't have to hit me so hard."

"Stop complaining." She rose from the ground and patted herself off. She then looked at Natsu.

"Shall we go then?"

"Where are we going?" Natsu asked standing up next to her

"I have prepared a picnic for us." She said with a confident smile

"Really?!" Natsu smiled wide as he began to drool at the prospect of food "Awesome, let's go."

He grabbed her hand, which made Erza blush, and began to run, then stopped after running about 20 feet.

He then let go of Erza's hand and looked at her up and down.

"W…what is it?" she said nervously

"Are you really going to wear that thing on a picnic?" he said as he pointed at her armor

Erza looked down at her clothes. "Oh, yes I almost forgot I was still wearing this. Hold on I'll change, I brought an outfit just for today."

She stepped back from Natsu and began to glow a bright yellow color, bright like the sun to be exact.

"Re-Quip."

She glowed even brighter as she was overtaken by magical power, which transformed her armor into something more appropriate for the day ahead.

Natsu covered his eyes from the brightness, but when he looked back, he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Erza, who usually never left her trademark cold, gray armor, was suddenly in a flowing white sun dress which stopped just above her ankles, wedged sandals, placed on random parts of the sundress were a pattern of scarlet roses; which made her hair long red hair, which was now tied at the end, stand out even more vibrantly. Finally Natsu looked up and saw a tan colored sun hat with a black ribbon tied in a bow around it.

Natsu was taken aback at the sudden shift in his friend's appearance, he didn't know what to say. He was speechless, which never happens with him, but one thing was for sure; Erza in this moment looked…

"Beautiful." He said under his breath without realizing it

Erza caught a faint noise from Natsu's mouth and blushed. "What…What did you say?"

Surprised that she may have heard, Natsu replied quickly "It…it was nothing. Ready to go?"

Erza smiled softly at him. "Yes. Let's go." She grabbed his hand and the two began to walk to wear Erza had set up the picnic basket.

After walking for a few minutes the two found themselves in a huge, lush, green field on the outskirts of Magnolia. Next to a large tree that seem to endlessly stretch into the sky, was their picnic basket. Natsu, seeing the basket eagerly ran ahead, literally salivating at the thought of food.

"Natsu, wait!" Erza yelled as she watched him run off, reaching out her hand. However, as she watched him run towards the tree she couldn't help but smile. Even if a bit naïve, she always admired Natsu's straightforward & innocent nature. She gripped the hand that Natsu had held onto earlier, and ran after him.

Erza arrived at the tree and saw Natsu sitting there quietly waiting for her. "What's wrong?" she inquired.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. I just thought it would be wrong to start without ya." He smiled wide showing his white teeth. Erza once again smiled and kneeled next to the basket.

"Alright, alright I've kept you waiting long enough. Let's eat."

She opened the picnic basket, and Natsu sat on edge growing more and more anxious as she pulled the food inside out. Noodles that glistened like gold, pure white rice, & piles upon piles of meat. Natsu's drool was literally drenched his shirt; seeing this, Erza began to giggle. Natsu then looked at her, as if asking for permission to accept this wondrous bounty.

"It's ok, you can eat." she said, smiling warmly.

So happy that he was given the ok, Natsu didn't waste a moment as he started to ingest the food like a wild animal. Seeing him so happy about her food made Erza smile and laugh a bit more. Noticing this Natsu looked up from stuffing his face.

"What's so funny Erza?" he asked

"It's nothing, keep eating."

"You're not going to eat?"

"No, I'm fine." She said as she reached her hand towards Natsu, wiping a piece a meat off of his messy face.

"Oh, ummm ok." Natsu said blushing as her soft hand rubbed across his face. He then continued to eat. Erza contently watching him.

After a few more minutes, Natsu happily laid down in the grass while rubbing his stomach. "Man that was good, Thanks for the food Erza." He said smiling at her.

Erza blushed hearing this, no one had ever thanked her for making food for them before, probably because Natsu was the only person she had ever cooked for. It felt…nice, especially coming from him.

"You don't have to thank me. I'm just glad you liked it."

After a moment of silence, Erza spoke up.

"Natsu?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you…have feelings for anyone in the guild?"

Natsu looked at her confused. "Feelings?"

"You know…" Erza started "Do you _like_ anyone in the guild?"

"Sure I do, I like everyone. I mean that's what friends do right?"

Erza giggled at his innocence, "No, that's not what I meant. I mean is there anyone in the guild you _like_ more than anyone else?"

There was an awkward silence after Erza asked this question, making her feel a bit uneasy, like she had misspoke. Just then Natsu answered.

"Well…I don't know ha-ha." He said as he smiled and scratched the back of his head.

Erza fell over in astonishment, how naïve could he be? Natsu continued to talk.

"I mean I care about EVERYONE in Fairy Tail, but there are a few of people I connect with more than others in the guild I guess. Happy of course, Lucy, Mira, Lisanna, Elfman, Wendy, the master, those jerks Gray & Gajeel; and…you."

When she heard that she was one of those people, Erza's heart skipped a beat.

"I guess because of all the battles and missions we've gone on as a team. I really couldn't imagine life in Fairy Tail without any of you guys." He sat up and looked towards the horizon, the wind blowing across the meadow. "I don't ever want to imagine life like that either." Erza could do nothing but stare at Natsu after hearing this, she had never heard him sound so…mature before, so adult. It had a warming, calming effect on her that she couldn't hide and she smiled.

Without really being in control of her body, she reached out to him and grabbed his shoulders, pulling him down. Startling Natsu.

"Wait Erza! What are you doing?" he closed his eyes in anticipation, thinking he was going to hit the ground hard. But this was not the case.

He opened his eyes and looked up, he saw Erza's face looking at him, smiling as she rubbed the side of his face. Natsu didn't really know what to say, the light shined brilliantly from her face, making her look almost angelic.

"Don't move." She said as she looked towards the horizon, placing her hands on his chest. "Let's just stay like this for a while…please."

Natsu had no protests, he didn't know why, but he wanted to stay like this for a bit as well. Something about the warmth of Erza's lap, she seemed like a totally different person. But Natsu had to be sure how to proceed next.

"Erza?"

"Yes, Natsu?"

"…fight me."

Erza got a surprised look on her face as she questioned him, "What?!"

"Fight me." He said it a bit more forceful this time, "I have to figure something out."

Initially she was hesitant, she feared that if she beat him, their moment would be gone; but after seeing the fire in his eyes, she relented.

"Alright, fine."

They stood up and walked south of the tree to a more cleared area. The stood opposite each other and Natsu took off his shirt, not wanting to ruin it.

Erza began to glow yellow again.

"Re-Quip"

When the light faded, she was no longer wearing her dress or hat. These things had been replaced by an orange, black, & dark red breastplate. Greaves reminiscent of dragon's claws, orange gauntlets with claws, a pair of what looked to be dragons wings, her hair being tied into twin high ponytails. Finally she carried a long red sword in her right hand.

Natsu smiled as he saw the warrior standing in front of him, he knew the look of her Flame Empress armor anywhere; and he knew that he would have a hard time beating her, but he wasn't trying to win; he wanted to clear his mind, and he could only do that through fighting her.

"You ready Erza? I won't go easy on you just because you fed me." Natsu smirked as got into his battle stance his fists being enveloped in flames.

Erza smirked as well, as she got into her battle stance, sword at the ready.

_Natsu, I see now, you were listening to me earlier; and I guess this is the only way you make things clearer for me._

"Raahhhhh!" Natsu ran at Erza with a ferocity all his own, and the battle started.

A flurry of flames decorated the sky as the two bounced of one another, but the flames weren't hot, they were warm…so warm that when they feel to the ground the grass glistened.

Erza noticed this and smiled, she had begun to understand what Natsu was trying to say to her. She had gotten her answer the only way he knew how to give it, through battle.

After an hour or so she beat Natsu and tossed him back towards the tree.

She changed back into her dress and walked towards him.

"Aw man, I almost had you that time." He said smiling

"I know you did." She said as she pulled his head into her lap again. She then looked towards the setting sun, her face softening. "One day, you will surpass me, I just hope you will allow me to watch…and be by your side." She looked a bit sullen as day turned to night but something in the air caught her eye.

It was a heart, made of pure flame. She reached out and touched it, it was warm, calming, and when she touched it she felt that warmth throughout her entire body. She then looked down at Natsu who was just innocently smiling back at her.

As the crickets chirped in the field, Erza found herself moving her face closer to Natsu's.

Natsu blew some fire around them in order to light up the scene.

Erza's lips reached Natsu's and she could feel the warmth of his lips as they touched.

With the light of Natsu's warm flames illuminating them in the night, Natsu Dragneel & Erza Scarlet became one, through a single yet passionate kiss.

…

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**Well here is the conclusion to my 1st Fairy Tail story. Thanks for the feedback from the 1st part. Let me know what you think of this one too. :)**

**Ok to everyone that asked me to continue the story you are in luck lol. Thanks to some of you guys reviews I started working on a new story. It will still tie into this one though. The 1st part of the sequel "Promise" is up and ready to read. :)  
**


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